Supermarket Brawl Over Too Many Items In Express Lane

So it happens!! So what....If someone has over the amount on the sign....I just wait and would never start a fight over some groceries..!!!!!
Life is too short to fight over your groceries.....
That's why I do my grocery shopping early on Sunday morning. Little traffic on the roads, parking lot almost empty, registers very available, and hardly any people in the store. Fewer chances of having to deal with ass*holes.
 
I think we all know the difference in a 10 item shopping cart ,and a shopping cart with way more than 10. Someone comes through with four six packs of beer, and one, who comes through with 24 different items. It's not only the number of items, but the checkout time needed to process the order. It doesn't take a genius to figure out who is gaming the system.
 
I was as a checker in a grocery store for a couple of years. Great job, by the way. In the mid 80s in CA, major grocery chains had strong unions so they had high pay ($18/hour at that time with time and a half on Sundays and triple time on holidays), great medical and dental benefits, and part-time employment that allowed hubby and me to mostly cover our daughter without putting her in daycare.

Most employees hated the express lane, but it was my preference. The managers were glad to make everyone happy so I mostly worked express.

When noticing someone in my line with a large order, I'd point to the sign and tell them to please use a different lane. If they had a basket full and had already started putting things on the belt, I'd make a judgment call about how long the line was, and what percentage of stuff they'd already unloaded.

In my experience, the vast majority of people with big orders in the express lane were there by accident. They hadn't noticed the sign and were embarrassed at the oversight when a fellow customer or I pointed it out. Truth is that it doesn't take much longer to scan 20 items than 10, even in those days.

Back then, the issue was less about the number of items than it was about being cash only. Checks, cash and food stamps (they were treated as cash) were the only forms of payment (we didn't take CC) and checks took dramatically longer to process. If my checkstand was idle, I'd siphon off customers from other lanes, but with the caveat that they had to be cash only so that if an express customer came up behind them the wait wouldn't be too long.

The situation described in the article shows a customer who selfishly disregarded the spirit of the express lane rule, and at least one other woman who needs some help with anger management. Good grief!

p.s. We called those sticks divider bars or order dividers.
 
It can be as little as zero cost here to have the supermarket shopping delivered depending on the time of day , but generally costs from around £2 to approx £6, the latter being delivered at peak time..
What a fabulous service this is and so practical.
It really helps those who can get out, shut ins and people who can’t or don’t drive. It gives much hope to future advances in such services.
 
The grocery delivery services in my area sometimes mark up certain items above the price being charged in the brick and mortar store that you are ordering from.

The services can still be a good value/service but like so many things it pays to understand the true cost.
 
Episode on one of my favorite shows - "Married With Children." Al wants to hurry home to watch his favorite TV show & an elderly lady ahead of him has lots of groceries (elderly lady played by Ron Howard's real-life mother, Jean):
 
The grocery delivery services in my area sometimes mark up certain items above the price being charged in the brick and mortar store that you are ordering from.

The services can still be a good value/service but like so many things it pays to understand the true cost.
Aldi does that. And they are upfront about it; they tell you.
 
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Only delivery services do that. They are 3rd party vendors. When the store has their own trucks and drivers, they don't mark up.

For instance, Aldi employs a delivery service, that's why. I think it's Insta Cart.
 
My local Super Walmart fixed the problem. I noticed recently they've gotten rid of all the limited or express lines. They did add several self service set ups though.
actually come to think of it Linda, I think that since the introduction of the self service checkouts in our stores some years ago, most of our supermarkets no longer have the 10 only item checkouts, but the do have ''basket '' only .
 


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